RYA Eric Twiname Championships - Battle of the Zones

by Imogen Stanley - RYA on 7 May 2015 Young sailors are preparing for the annual ‘Battle of the Zones’ with the 29th RYA Eric Twiname Championships set for Rutland Water Sailing Club over the weekend (9-10 May).

The RYA Eric Twiname Championships is one of the premier events on the Youth racing calendar. Over 275 sailors have been invited to race in three dinghy classes, Optimist, Topper and RS Feva, as well as four windsurfing classes (4.5, 5.8, Techno 6.8 and Techno 7.8) from the six English Zones, Wales, Scotland and Northern Ireland.

The defending Eric Twiname Shield champions, RYA South East Zone, were triumphant over a windy weekend in 2014 and will be back to try and see off their rival Zones. Once again the event could be blustery with the forecast showing a low pressure set to descend on Rutland Water over the weekend.

After a winter of training in their respective Zones and Home Countries sailors are individually invited to attend the event, for some this is the first time that they will race on a national scale. There is no entry fee as the event is jointly funded by the RYA and the Eric Twiname Trust.

The Eric Twiname Trust was set up by Eric’s father Alec, Eric had many talents and one of his strongest passions was sailing. The trust has funded many areas of sailing however now the trust concentrates on youth sailing, in particular racing. As well as being the lead sponsor for the RYA Eric Twiname Championships, they sponsor the purchase of boats for organisations.

Chris Atherton, Event Director and RYA High-Performance Manager for the South and South West: “The RYA Eric Twiname Championships is always a great event that the sailors really look forward to. By bringing the best sailors together it is a great way for them to put their skills to the test against the rest of their age group.

“For some sailors this is the first national event that they will attend and it’s great that the Eric Twiname Trust supports the event, encouraging more youngsters to go racing.”

The Laser 4.7 Junior Squad selection event will also take place over the weekend at Rutland Water Sailing Club.

As well as racing, the sailors will take part in some teambuilding activities. A human table football tournament will be set-up on Saturday afternoon, the RYA Zone and Home Country teams will go head to head against each other and their coaches.

The UK will celebrate Victory in Europe, 70 years since the end of World War II, on Saturday 9 May and the RYA plans to celebrate and educate sailors at the Eric Twiname Championships. Everyone will be given a mini Union Jack flag as well as a streamer to fly from the top of their mast on the water. Rutland Water Sailing Club will also be decorated with Union Jacks and other merchandise for a street party BBQ on Saturday evening.

Racing is scheduled to take place over 9-10 May at Rutland Water Sailing Club.